Raindapple
by The Girl With The Knives
Summary: Rainkit thought she was a normal cat. She wanted to be the best warrior there was, maybe even leader someday. Sure, she was the runt of the littler at the moment, but someday... And then everything changed. She became an apprentice, started learning to hunt, to fight. But she couldn't. She couldn't hurt a fly. So she left. And life went on without her.
1. Allegiances and Prolouge

**OK, first chapter, first fanfic, please read! :D **

**Allegiances**

**ThunderClan**

**Leader**: Fernstar- light gray she-cat

**Deputy**: Vixentail- rusty colored she-cat

**Medicine Cat**: Hawkclaw- brown tabby

**Warriors:**

Redflower- orange tabby she-cat

Jayflight- blueish tom

Turtlewalk- slow, brown tom

Pineleap- light brown tom

Wildheart- wild young calico she-cat

Heatherfur- tan she-cat

Birchbark- white tom

Hollyfire- black she-cat

Icepool- white she-cat

Oakpelt- brown tabby

Whitepetal- white she-cat

Honeytail- golden she-cat

Foxstripe- red tom with white stripe along his back

Leafstorm- tortoiseshell she-cat

Crowdip- black tom

**Apprentices:**

Graypaw- gray tom, apprentice of Icepool

Softpaw- white she-cat with gray splotches, apprentice of Foxstripe

Mangopaw- orange tom, apprentice of Wildheart

Mintpaw- misty she-cat, apprentice of Honeytail

Applepaw- red she-cat, apprentice of Leafstorm

Mudpaw- brown tom, apprentice of Redflower

**Queens:**

Snowlight: white she-cat, pregnant

**Elders:**

Deerleap- tan she-cat

**ShadowClan**

**Leader: **Nightstar- black tom

**Deputy: **Toadleap: big tabby tom (looks somewhat like Tigerstar)

**Medicine Cat:** Russetfeather- black and white she-cat

**Warriors:**

Shadowwolf- silver tom

Mistyflower- silver she-cat, siblings with Shadowwolf

Owlpelt- light brown tabby tom

Webfrog- black and white tom

Foxtail- red and white spotted tom

Hailflake- gray she-cat

Smoketree- gray tom

Frostmoon- silver she-cat

Bluestem- blue she-cat

Sandsun- sand colored she-cat

Swiftsprint- black tom

Kinkbush: dust-colored tom

**Apprentices:**

Mudpaw- brown tom, apprentice of Toadleap

Snowpaw- white she-cat, apprentice of Sandsun

**Queens:**

Winterleaf- white she-cat; Kits: Horsekit- tan she-cat, Flowerkit- pale gray she-cat, Wolfkit- silver gray tom

Sundapple- sun colored she-cat, Toadleap's mate, pregnant

**Elders:**

Fawnstep- light brown she-cat with white dapples

**WindClan**

**Leader: **Breezestar- silver she-cat

**Deputy: **Rabbitrain- tan tom with gray dapples

**Medicine Cat: **Turtleshell- tortoiseshell she-cat

**Warriors:**

Horsehoof- tan she-cat

Tigerpool- tiger striped tom

Sparrowwing- gray tabby she-cat

Dawnrise- light brown tabby tom

Foxpelt- rusty colored she-cat

Whalesplash- silver she-cat, good swimmer, half RiverClan

Redleaf- red tom

Sheepfur- white, fluffy she-cat

Chestnutcloud- chestnut colored, fluffy she-cat

Daisynose- shy gray she-cat

Bearclaw- dark brown tabby

Pigheart- pale pink she-cat

Wildmoon- silver she-cat

**Apprentices:**

Sunpaw- sun colored she-cat, apprentice of Dawnrise

**Queens:**

Irisflower- pale gray she-cat, pregnant

**Elders:**

Moonfrost- silver she-cat

**RiverClan**

**Leader:** Shellstar- red tom

**Deputy: **Rosepetal- pale she-cat

**Medicine Cat: **Otterdash- light brown she-cat

**Warriors:**

Pebblestream- tan young tom

Rainfish- blue she-cat with light gray dapples

Heatherfall- tan she-cat

Hailstream- white tom

Quailwing- skittish gray tom

Snowtail- adventurous white she-cat

**Apprentices:**

No apprentices

**Queens:**

No queens

**Elders:**

No elders

**FireClan**

**Leader: **Sparkstar- orange and white tabby

**Deputy: **Flamelick- orange she-cat

**Medicine Cat: **Wildfire- light brown and white tabby she-cat

**Warriors:**

Cloudtuft- white tom

Frostshell- tortoiseshell she-cat

Fireflower- red she-cat

Swiftslash- black and white tom

Redfur- red she-cat

Blazeflash- sand colored tom

Embermist- orange, black, ad gray she-cat

Willowfeather- silver she-cat

Birdcall- brown tabby tom

Cedardust- light brown tom

Duskfluff- dark brown tom

Stormheart- gray and white tom

**Apprentices:**

Mintpaw- gray she-cat, apprentice of Stormheart

Robinpaw- red and brown tom, apprentice of Duskfluff

**Queens:**

Heatherwing- tan she-cat, pregnant

Ocelotleap- calico she-cat, pregnant

**Elders:**

Sparrowflight- light brown tom

Skunkstripe- black tom with a white stripe down his back

**SkyClan**

**Leader:** Squirrelstar- tan she-cat

**Deputy: **Primrosepetal- white she-cat

**Medicine Cat: **Katnissflower- light gray she-cat, sister of Primrosepetal

**Warriors:**

Frogmouth: old, gray tom

Jaydusk: blue tom

Tinysprint: small, white with tawny splotches fast she-cat

**Apprentices:**

none

**Queens:**

Featherfluff: pregnant black she-cat and severely sick with greencough

**Elders:**

none

**SeaClan**

**Leader: **Lakestar: sand-colored she-cat

**Deputy: **Swiftstream: silver she-cat

**Medicine Cat: **Catfish: light brown tom

**Warriors:**

Fishflight: silver tom, brother of Swiftstream

Ottersplash: light brown tabby she-cat

Beavertail: dark brown tom

Seaweed: greenish-gray tom

Coraljump: beautiful black she-cat

Bubbleheart: blue tom

Rockyshark: ferocious black tom

Cliffspray: dust-colored she-cat

Shellpond: white she-cat

Riptide: blue-gray tom

Tidepool: blue-gray she-cat, sister of Riptide

Horsecloud: dust-colored she-cat

Antgrass: red-ish tom

Bluecrow: grayish blue tom

Fishleap: silver she-cat

Whalethroat: gray and white tom

Brightstream: white she-cat with tawny patches

Tanglefuzz: dark brown tom

**Apprentices:**

Mosspaw: tortoiseshell she-cat who's missing an eye

Hawkpaw: light brown tom

Skypaw: white and gray she-cat

**Queens:**

Sandsplotch: sand-colored and gray she-cat; Kits: Crowkit: black she-kit; Swankit: fluffy, gray she-kit; Heronkit: blue and brown tom

Tsunamifur: blueish-gray she-cat; pregnant

**Elders:**

Fawncircle: light brown she-cat

Spirithorn: white tom who used to be a medicine cat

Horseflower: dust-colored tom

**Prologue**

Cold rain dappled the ground. Eyes shone in the undergrowth. "ShadowClan, attack!"

Silver-furred cats sprang out of the bushes into a grassy clearing. Startled cats scampered out of their dens. "SeaClan, attack!"

The clearing erupted into a battlefield. A black she-cat with the smell of fish coming off her sleek fur leaped onto a huge, tabby tom. She raked her claws down his side and he tried to fling her off his back. He finally rolled over crushing the she-cat underneath him. She squealed like a kit and ran off into the woods. The tabby raced to the leader's den, seeing that she wasn't fighting in the battle.

He raced into the den only to find it empty. _Where could she have gone? SeaClan wouldn't have night patrols, would they?_ He wondered. Then he realized that she might have kits in the nursery or be protecting the elders. He raced outside and charged the nursery. Inside, he found Lakestar crouched in front of him. Behind her was a tortoiseshell she-cat. The medicine cat was with her, chewing up a bundle of herbs.

Lakestar hissed and leaped at the tabby. She raked her claws down his side, then leaped back and kept darting in and biting him, using her speed and lack of size as an advantage. Then the tabby yowled, "Take the kits!"

He darted around Lakestar and swooped down to pick up a mewling, black kit. He spun around to leave, only to find Lakestar in the way. She snarled and fluffed up her fur, making herself look two times bigger. Then she was knocked to the side by other ShadowClan warriors. They picked up the black kit's siblings and raced off in the direction of their own camp. The tabby left right on their tails, but Lakestar leaped on top of him, forcing him to drop the kit he was carrying. "You won't take Crowkit, Toadleap!" Lakestar spat.

Toadleap tried to roll over, but Lakestar leaped off and intercepted his move. She clawed at his belly, tearing out clumps of his fur. Toadleap used his immense size to knock her over and stand on all fours again. He scooped up Crowkit and continued the journey to his camp. He sprinted through the mass of fighting cats and into the woods. He reached his camp in no time. He then gave Crowkit to a white cat in the nursery. Then he ran off, back to the battlefield. He was greeted with an empty clearing. There were no cats anywhere. _Was this StarCan's doing?_ He wondered.

"Over here!" Toadleap whipped around, trying to find the voice. He saw a flick of a tail in the nursery. But before he could get there, he heard a huge rumbling right behind him. It was louder than thunder, louder than StarClan's fury. Toadleap turned around. It wasn't any of those possibilities…. It was a tsunami!

Toadleap sprinted as fast as he could to the nursery, where all the other cats were hiding. Water sprayed onto his back, turning quickly into a blanket of cold salt water that made its way into the ShadowClan warrior's mouth. He was a fox-length away from the safety of the nursery. Then he was dragged backwards by the immense wave. He spluttered as he swallowed a mouthful of sea water. He was twirled this way and that, and soon lost sight of any sort of land. Then he was sinking rapidly to the bottom of the ocean. _I don't want to die here!_ He thought. _I have a Clan and a mate…. And soon I'll have little kits. Oh, StarClan save me!_

A stream of bubbles rose from Toadleap's mouth. He closed his eyes and prepared to meet with StarClan.


	2. The Day Her Destiny Began

**OK, guys, here's the next chapter. Please review and tell me what I need to change. :D**

Chapter 1

A blue she-kit with lighter dapples on her back panted heavily as she slid under a bush, just paw-steps away from a dark brown tabby tom, closing his eyes and counting loudly.

"Watch it, Rainkit!" a silky voice mewed from under the vegetation.

Rainkit turned to see a silver tabby, her sister. "Sorry, Featherkit," Rainkit muttered, apologizing for sticking her paw in Featherkit's face. Featherkit grunted and her eyes suddenly grew wide. She huddled deeper under the bush.

Confused, Rainkit tilted her head. "What's wr-"

But Featherkit grabbed Rainkit's tail in her jaws and dragged her to the back of the bush before she could continue.

"Shut up!" she whisper-screamed, eyeing the paws of the brown tabby getting closer to the bush. Then they stopped right in front. Rainkit stood paralyzed, but Featherkit was already out the back. "Have fun with Tigerkit," she meowed over her shoulder. But she spoke too soon, because before she knew it, the tabby tom was standing right in front of her. Rainkit backed into the bush, keeping out of sight. "How'd you…" Featherkit murmured, looking back and forth at the tabby paws in front of the bush and the kit in front of her. Then she must have realized that the paws were Ottersplash's because her bemused expression quickly changed.

"Found you," Tigerkit meowed, clearly amused. "And I _did_ see you Rainkit."

Rainkit clambered out from the greenery, petals and leaves clinging to her fur. "But I was so well hidden!" she complained.

"Not really," Tigerkit muttered, but then he said, "OK, Featherkit, you're it."

Featherkit sneered at her siblings and then started counting. "Not so fast, kits," a blue-ish she-cat mewed from a rock ledge overlooking the sea.

"But, Mom-," Tigerkit tried but Featherkit cut him off.

"Do we _have_ to go?" she whined.

"Yes, dear, it's the apprentices' warrior ceremonies!" the kits' mother meowed.

"It's not _our _fault..." Rainkit muttered, looking at the ground.

A few warriors burst out laughing as they heard this remark.

**(Skipping ahead)**

"I, Lakestar of SeaClan, call upon my warrior ancestors to look down on these apprentices. They have trained hard to understand the ways of your noble code, and I commend them to you as warriors in their turn," Lakestar started, standing tall on the High-Ledge. "Mosspaw and Skypaw, do you promise to uphold the warrior code and to protect and defend your Clan, even at the cost of your life?"

"We do," Skypaw and Mosspaw mewed excitedly, exchanging glances with one another.

Lakestar smiled and continued. "Then by the powers of StarClan, I give you your warrior names. Skypaw, in memory of Hawkpaw, you will be known as Skyhawk. StarClan honors your wisdom and thoughtfulness, and we welcome you as a full warrior of SeaClan." Skyhawk lowered her head, clearly remembering the horrible battle with ShadowClan where Hawkpaw and a ShadowClan warrior named Toadleap died. Her grief was quickly cut off as her best friend stepped up to receive her warrior name.

"Mosspaw," Lakestar began again, "from this moment on, you will be known as Mosspool. StarClan honors your independence and determination, and we welcome you as a full warrior of SeaClan."

"Skyhawk! Mosspool!" the other clan cats shouted excitedly.

_Someday, that'll be me_, Rainkit thought, a huge smile playing out on her face.

**:D I hope you liked it.**


	3. Murder in the First

**Sorry I took so long to update, but here it is. :D**

Chapter 2

"Go to sleep, Rainkit!" Featherkit muttered, scowling at her sister.

"I can't, I just can't!" Rainkit replied, shaking with excitement. "Our ceremonies are tomorrow!"

Featherkit glared at her for a while and then put her paws over her ears, trying to go to sleep. "When we become warriors, what do you think my virtues are going to be?" Rainkit mewed, having no intention of stopping.

"Rainkit," Featherkit meowed, half asleep, "StarClan honors your annoyance and your loudness." Rainkit flashed Featherkit an angry look and then stuck her tongue out. "Now go to sleep!"

"Fine," Rainkit muttered, laying down her head. _When I'm an apprentice, I'm going to kick her butt in our sessions!_

"Rainkit, stop wriggling!"

…

Everything became a blur as Lakestar said the ceremony words. Then Ottersplash walked up to Rainpaw. After a few minutes of leaping up into the air and saying "Yes!" repeatedly, Rainpaw was led outside.

"I've never been a mentor before, so go easy on me, OK?" Ottersplash mewed, nervously.

"Uh, huh," Rainpaw muttered, chasing a butterfly.

"Well, this is the training cavern, where all of you are going to train," Ottersplash said, gesturing to a large cave with glowworms hanging from the roof. "You have to be quiet, or the glowworms will go away." A look of aw covered Rainpaw's face, but it soon disappeared when she was introduced to the twoleg place.

"It's ugly," she mewed bluntly. Ottersplash started laughing, but soon started to move on to the next landmark.

"This is the meadow, where most of the prairie dogs are caught, and it's also a good place to sit and just relax" Ottersplash meowed. They walked across the green blanket, stopping halfway. Ottersplash sniffed the air. "Watch this, she told Rainpaw. Then she dropped into the hunter's crouch and started crawling towards a hole. Suddenly something brown and furry popped out and Ottersplash leaped on top of it, crushing it's spine between her jaws. Blood poured to the ground, and Rainpaw found herself wincing as she stared. "You're going to learn how to hunt tomorrow. Isn't that great?"

"Great…" Rainpaw muttered half-heartedly.

Soon enough, they had gotten to another landmark, a large, waterfall with many aqua pools at the bottom. Dipping her paw in, Rainpaw watched as the ripples startled the fish. Red, blue, and green flits swam quickly away from her paw. And right into Ottersplash's. _Why does she have to kill everything?_ Rainpaw thought, glancing at the dead prairie dog. Turning away from the fish, Rainpaw started walking away from the pools. "You don't want to spend time here?" Ottersplash mewed, between mouthfuls of fish.

"Well, I guess I'm just tired…" Rainpaw, muttered.

"Well I guess we should go home now, then. The waterfall was the last landmark except for the twoleg camping site," Ottersplash mewed. "Do you want to go there now?"

Rainpaw nodded, and trailed after her mentor.

…

Back at camp, Rainpaw sprinted towards Featherpaw and TIgerpaw at the fresh-kill pile. "Oh hey, Rainpaw how was your tour?" Featherpaw meowed. Rainpaw shrugged, eager to tell her siblings what happened. "Rockyshark seems to understand that I want to fight. He said I could learn fighting moves tomorrow instead of hunting. Isn't that great?" Rainpaw wasn't listening.

"My mentor is a murderer!" She yowled. Every cat in the clearing turned to stare at Rainpaw. Ottersplash walked up to her with sympathy in her eyes.

"Rainpaw, I only killed a prairie dog and some fish. How is that murdering?"

"They were living and now they aren't!" Rainpaw shouted at her.

"Is that why you looked sad?" Ottersplash mewed, still sympathetic. "If you really feel this way, you should become a medicine cat. Rainpaw had thought of that, but realized she wouldn't have kits or a mate.

Rainpaw opened her mouth to shoot something back at the warrior, but was at a loss for words. Instead, tears clouded her eyes and in a huff, she shrieked, "Murderer!" And then she ran as fast as she could towards the apprentices den. Lakestar blocked her path. She started to say something but Rainpaw was already streaking past her, towards the waterfall.

…

_My first day of training and I've already failed._ Rainpaw sniffled and lowered herself into the water. _I'll go home at night. I hope nobody will talk about that argument; they must all think I'm a bird brain. Well, maybe I am…_ Rainpaw sighed and twirled her tail around the fish.

**Yay! It's a little longer this time, and I apologize for taking so long. I'm probably going to write a chapter every week from now on. **


	4. The Battle of More Tears

**86 views but only 4 reviews? Really ppl? Review meh story! PLZ**

Chapter 3

"Wake up, Rainpaw."

Rainpaw rolled over and stared blankly at Mosspool. "Leave me alone," Rainpaw muttered, finally turning away from the warrior's mutilated face.

"Rainpaw," Mosspool mewed quietly, "Lakestar said that she would organize a battle patrol to get Crowkit, Swankit, and Heronkit back from that retched ShadowClan."

"My first battle!" Rainpaw meowed, leaping up excitedly. "Wait, don't you guys hate me?"

"No, we don't, we're going to see how do you do in this battle and then if you can't handle it, you can be a medicine cat."

"But medicine cats can't have kits, or a mate. What type of life is that?"

"Maybe you can persuade Lakestar and the other leaders?" Mosspool suggested.

"Alright, I'm coming," Rainpaw mewed after Mosspool as she padded away.

…

When she got to the camp, everyone pretended like nothing had ever happened. They all acted like Rainpaw was a normal warrior. And then came the battle. "The cats going on this patrol will be Rainpaw, Tigerpaw, Featherpaw, Rockyshark, Sandsplotch, Bubbleheart, Coraljump, Skyhawk, and Cliffspray," Lakestar announced.

The chosen cats got into a group and started discussing plans. "Skyhawk, Cliffspray, Tigerpaw, and Bubbleheart can invade the camp and attack the warriors when they're sleeping. Then Rockyshark can hold off Nightstar. Coraljump, you're the most agile and fast, so you can quickly get in and out of the nursery without getting caught. Sandsplotch, you can go with Coraljump to reassure the kits, because you're their mother. Featherpaw, Rainpaw, and I can stay on the tree line and transfer the kits to camp." Lakestar leaned back, proud of her plan.

"Sounds good," the other cats agreed, and they were off.

…

"So, Rainpaw, thought about being a medicine cat yet?" Featherpaw asked her sister.

Rainpaw gritted her teeth and mewed, "I'll think about it." _Why don't these cats mind their own business?_ Then she realized she might just be overreacting.

Suddenly Rainpaw crashed into Skyhawk who had stopped. "What was that fo-" Rainpaw started, but was cut off by a quick glare from Rockyshark.

"There's a warrior sitting vigil, and I think Featherpaw should take this one," Lakestar whispered to her warriors. Featherpaw's eyes brightened and her tail stuck way up in the air.

"I'll try my best," she said, her voice betraying her excitement. And with that, she snuck under a bush and waited. The warrior standing vigil was a white she-cat, very odd in ShadowClan. She stood as still as a statue, not even blinking an eye. _That's one tough warrior!_ Then a silver blur leapt out of the bush and started to pummel the warrior's soft stomach. One of Featherpaw's paws was over the cat's mouth, to prevent any warning to ShadowClan. Meanwhile, the other cats followed the plan, minus Featherpaw at the tree line. Coraljump leaped to the roof of the nursery cave. Sandsplotch, obviously anxious to get back to her kits, ran inside without thinking. As she attacked the queens, Cliffspray, Bubbleheart, Skyhawk, and Tigerpaw stalked into the warriors' den. A mini battle was produced, thankfully not too loud. Rockyshark crept into the leader's den and knocked him out, easily. And all this time, Rainpaw was thinking, _Will I ever be this good?_

"Rainpaw, focus!" Lakestar mewed. "Sandsplotch and Coraljump are coming in with the first two kits…" Lakestar trailed off as she realized there were no bundles in their jaws.

"We couldn't find them in the nursery!" Coraljump meowed.

"How about the apprentices' den," Rainpaw muttered. The two cats were soon sprinting away. Rainpaw was watching them when the scent of blood reached her nose. She whipped her head around. The white she-cat had wriggled out of Featherpaw's hold and the two were now battling it out on the ground.

"Rainpaw, go help Featherpaw," Lakestar mewed. Following orders, but still wincing every paw-step, Rainpaw leaped on top of the warrior claws sheathed. The warrior easily pinned her down.

Laughing, she muttered, "This isn't training kid. Unsheathe those claws and give me something to work with!"

Shaking Rainpaw kicked the warrior and punched her in the face. She fell to the ground and was soon overpowered by Featherpaw. Rainpaw then ran over to Lakestar, trying to shake her worries away. How could she care so much about another clan? This was unnatural. Coraljump roughly shoved a fluffy black apprentice towards her. "I don't want to go home, I like it here," she was saying, planting all four paws in the bloodstained ground. Rainpaw grabbed the apprentice's tail between her jaws and started dragging her towards camp. Sandsplotch soon followed and replaced Rainpaw, soothing her kit.

As Rainpaw ran the distance back to the battle, silver flashes started to appear on the edge of her vision. Then a ghostly silver-gray tom swerved in front of her. "Hey there, Tiny" He mewed, mockingly. "I heard you weren't a fighter; didn't use your claws properly, huh?" He stopped to give Rainpaw a cool stare. Then he started circling her.

"Or, more like you didn't use them at all. Maybe you don't know how to unsheathe them or something. Maybe you're just way too loving. Well I can help you with that, sweetheart," he said. _Stop pissing me off_ Rainpaw thought. And then his words registered.

"You can help me? Actually help me?" she asked, eyes wide.

The tom stopped for a bit, confused. Then he smiled and laughed. "Oh, of course," he said. He then flashed Rainpaw a devious smirk. "All you need is a little battle training."

And then he leaped on top of Rainpaw, pummeling her stomach and clawing at her, biting and scratching. She tried flinging him off of her, but only managed to catch his eye with her paw. Then, catching him off guard, she leaped up and raced away, back to her own camp. "Coward!" he yelled after her. Tears flowed from Rainpaw's ice blue eyes. She already knew she was a coward, and now she was a wimp. What would she tell her family? She almost laughed thinking about it. _Hey mom, today I fought off cats with unsheathed claws and then I ran away. Aren't you proud of me?_ Then she realized, _What will I tell Lakestar? What if she banishes me?_ Rainpaw was in for a lot of trouble and she knew it.

**Alright peeps, not sure if anyone is still reading this, but if you are, please leave a review so that I know I have an audience. And tell me if you liked the chapter. **


	5. The Start of Something New

Chapter Four

"At least we got Crowpaw out," Featherpaw mewed, flashing disgusted glances at Rainpaw as she talked with Ottersplash. "No thanks to that _bird-brain_!"

Rainpaw sniffled and turned her back towards the cats. She had just been informed that they had the lost battle and ShadowClan had taken back Heronpaw and Swanpaw. And she had been yelled at by a rather angry Featherpaw about how nobody _actually_ wanted her in the clan after her episode with Ottersplash. "What kind of cat calls hunting murdering?" Rainpaw recalled her sister muttering.

Soon after the battle party returned home, Lakestar called a clan meeting. All the cats began to gather around the high ledge. "Yes, Rainpaw isn't what we expected, but I think she should still continue her training," Lakestar mewed from the huge boulder.

"Lakestar, what would I teach her? She can't hurt a living thing!" Ottersplash mewed. She glanced sympathetically at Rainpaw. "I think she'd be much better off learning from Catfish," the young warrior said, mentioning the old medicine cat. Rainpaw ducked her head as she retreated to the beach of the SeaClan camp. The salty air blew through her fur as she stared into the ocean waves. She could hear the rest of the clan meeting behind her, anxious for what Lakestar would decide.

"Nonsense. I'll teach her something," Lakestar meowed. After a few more announcements, Rainpaw left with Lakestar to the apprentices' training cave.

"Rainpaw? Are you sure you don't want to be a medicine cat? You do know how much they contribute to a clan, don't you? Without a medicine cat-"

"I know," Rainpaw murmured, dragging her feet in the well-worn path through the beachy trees. A seagull cried out far above, and Lakestar sighed.

"Rainpaw, there's a Gathering in a few moons. If you still feel like hating me-"

"I don't hate you," Rainpaw said, hastily. She didn't want to disrespect her leader. Lakestar was an idol to her. "And… yes. I would love to go with you to the Gathering."

Lakestar chuckled. "Alright, young one." She picked up the pace along the dirt path.

"Where are we going?" Rainpaw asked, trying to keep up. Her body had grown, but her legs had stayed the same awkward length.

"You will see," Lakestar murmured. Rainpaw turned her gaze back to the path, wondering where Lakestar was leading her.

A droplet spattered against Rainpaw's nose, cold and foreign. It had not rained since Mosspool and Skyhawk had gotten their warrior names a few moons ago. Rainpaw yelped at the icy shock, and Lakestar laughed.

Rainpaw's tail flicked in annoyance as the drops came down faster. "Isn't this wonderful?" Lakestar murmured. Rainpaw grumbled her objection. "Oh, lighten up, Rainpaw. The rain is a gift that StarClan has praised us with. Rainpaw looked up to the sky, trying to believe that there were cats out there looking out for them.

Rainpaw's ears flicked before she understood what she was hearing. A bolt of lightning crashed through the sky, illuminating the path ahead of her. A lone cat was huddled under a rocky overhang, next to a clear blue pool with bright green grass and soft-looking sand around the bank. Colorful flowers dotted the grass, and three small hills grew up around the little safe haven, as if guarding it.

"Catfish?" Rainpaw meowed, recognizing the brown tom. His head swiveled around, and his dark eyes rested on the young apprentice and her leader. "What are you doing here?" Rainpaw continued, lightly trotting up to the older cat.

"What are _you_ doing here?" Catfish mewed, the annoyance clear in his voice. "I don't need a stupid apprentice to come messing up my time with the ancestors."

"Catfish," Lakestar's voice came through the rumbles of the storm, as if warning the medicine cat not to be rude.

Catfish glanced up at the leader. "My apologies, Lakestar," he mewed, dipping his head politely. "I'm just riled up, is all. First a deadly sickness roots itself in SkyClan, and now the stor-"

"SkyClan is sick?" Rainpaw interrupted.

Catfish's long brown ears flicked irritably. "Yes." Then he turned to Lakestar. "Why is she here?" he questioned. Lakestar sighed.

"I wanted to bring her along for the medicine cat's meeting. Let her see what happens here."

Catfish's eyes narrowed. "But this is supposed to a private affair. Only medicine cat apprentices and leaders are allowed to come."

"Yes, I know that, but what's the harm?" Lakestar meowed. Rainpaw was starting to get irritated by the way the adult cats talked like she wasn't there. She was about to butt in when a rustling from on top of one of the hills drew her attention. She watched in fright as two pure-white cats burst from the dull green bushes at the top. As they neared the other cats, they all stopped to greet Catfish and Lakestar.

"Who are they?" Rainpaw whispered to Lakestar as the new cats went to sit by the clear blue pool.

"Primrosepetal of SkyClan and Cloudtuft of FireClan. They have come to the Moonpool to share tongues with their ancestors." In awe, Rainpaw fell silent. Soon, other cats started to arrive. A light brown she-cat who said her name was Otterdash, a tortoiseshell she-cat, and a cat from brown tabby tom from ThunderClan who lumbered towards Rainpaw as if he wanted to smother her. She backed away quickly, tumbling over her own paws. The large brown tabby paused, and then let out a booming laugh.

"She's scared," he purred, his voice rumbling like thunder. "Is this the new apprentice?" Catfish chuckled.

"I don't know what she is, my friend. All I know is she's definitely not a warrior." The two cats laughed at this, and then the foreign cat trod up to her, his fur wet and sticking to his skin.

"Name's Hawkclaw," the tabby meowed. Rainpaw looked up, her eyes wide and frightened.

"I'm sorry, Hawkclaw, this is Rainpaw. I wanted her to see a little bit of medicine cat life. I have a feeling she'll like it." Hawkclaw turned his enormous head to smile at the much more frail-looking she-cat.

Then he turned back to Rainpaw. "Have you eaten anything today?" he questioned the young apprentice.

"N-no," Rainpaw stammered. She scrambled back to her feet, trying to look as dignified as she had before. "Why?"

The tabby chuckled. "The dreams wouldn't come to you if you had eaten even a mouse toe."

_Ew_, Rainpaw thought. _Does this strange cat eat mouse toes?_

"Where is Russetfeather?" a cat asked.

"She must be running late. We'll have to start without her," another cat meowed. Murmurs of agreement rose up around the cats. Lakestar turned her head to Rainpaw.

"Follow my lead, Rainpaw," she mewed. "And stick close. This storm is getting worse every second." With a nervous look around her, Lakestar stepped forward toward the pool, and laid down beside it. She let her tail fall into the water and her eyes drooped close.

Rainpaw hesitated only a moment before following her example. She expected a cold rush as she dipped her tail into the water, but instead she only felt a tingling warmth spread through her body. As she nestled down beside Lakestar, her vision started going black, but she did not panic. Something just felt _right_ about it.

**Hey guys, I would love a review, and I know not really a whole ton of people are reading this, but it's still fun to update. Anyway, a review would be much appreciated, and I will probably be updating in about a week, or maybe, if you're lucky, tomorrow. Anyway, see you later! :)**

**\- Knifey**


	6. Questions and Answers

**I'm so sorry for the long wait! I had planned to update this so much earlier... I'll try to get the next one up extra fast to make up for this one. :(**

Chapter Six

The stone pressed cold and hard against Rainpaw's jaw. She lifted her head drowsily. The moon was right above her, shining down into the pool, illuminating it. She gazed around her at the other cats, disappointed to see that they were all still sleeping. Rainpaw lifted her tail from the pool, shaking the water from it.

_Had the dreams not worked for me? _Rainpaw questioned. She felt utterly hopeless. What would she tell Lakestar?

"Rainpaw?" The apprentice whipped around to see a large brown tabby, almost twice her size with the smell of ShadowClan wafting off his fur. She trembled in fear. Rainpaw raised her muzzle, ready to yowl in alarm and wake up Lakestar and the others to warn them of this intruder.

"Hush, Rainpaw," the cat meowed, stepping closer. Rainpaw shrank back, her ears flat against her head.

"Who are you? Are you from ShadowClan? Get out of our territory!" She hissed at him, although the large cat just smiled warmly at her.

"Yes, Rainpaw, I _was_ from ShadowClan. But I left to be with StarClan." Rainpaw cautiously stood up.

"Y-you're dead?" she asked, noticing for the first time that stars seemed to swirl in his pelt.

The cat shifted his feet uncomfortably. "Well, yes. My name is Toadleap." He waited, as if expecting Rainpaw to have some sort of reaction. The young apprentice searched her memory, trying to remember something about this cat.

_Toadleap. Toadleap… Something about that name… That's right! He was killed in the tsunami!_ Rainpaw smiled. "I remember you!" Then her grin faded. "You stole Sandsplotch's kits." Toadleap looked at the dusty ground.

"And I shouldn't have. I disrupted the bond between a mother and her kits, and StarClan punished me by sending a tsunami. I begged their forgiveness and they accepted it. So instead of sending me to the Dark Forest, they brought me here."

Rainpaw sat down, flicking her tail. "I still don't forgive you."

"And you shouldn't." The two cats waited in silence for a while. Then finally, Toadleap spoke up again. "Rainpaw, something else happened in that tsunami…"

"That's enough," a loud, booming voice said. Toadleap looked to the floor submissively, while a misty gray cat stepped lightly from the fog that had surrounded the moonpool.

"Who are you?" Rainpaw asked.

"You don't need to know that," the cat murmured, then turned to Toadleap.

"She's is not ready yet. You have already messed with her future enough." The cat then turned back to Rainpaw. "It's time we send you back," she said, and with a flick of her tail, the fog flowed over Rainpaw, smothering her in the cold. She let out a surprised yelp and whipped around, searching frantically for one of the starry cats. Her head bashed against stone and suddenly the fog disappeared.

She stood up, her head throbbing. The two starry cats had disappeared and the sun had started its journey across the sky. She glanced around the pool, delighted to see that the other cats had started to wake up.

"How was it?" Lakestar asked from beside her. Rainpaw shook her head.

"Confusing."

The SeaClan leader laughed. "You'll get used to it," she said. The medicine cats bid goodbye to each other, and then they all left to their respectable territories. Catfish, Lakestar, and Rainpaw set off back to SeaClan.

Rainpaw shouldered some bushes aside as she entered the camp. A few cats turned and meowed a greeting, and Rainpaw smiled back politely. She stopped by the fresh-kill pile and gently picked up a vole. She padded over to a ledge on the cliff face, near the high ledge and the leader's den. A few warriors and Tigerpaw, her brother, were already up there, sharing tongues and basking in the hot sunlight.

"Where were you?" Tigerpaw asked as Rainpaw settled down beside him.

"You'll get jealous if I say," Rainpaw said, beaming. Down below, she saw Lakestar and Catfish trot out of the bushes and into their dens.

Tigerpaw cracked open one of his eyes to see her. "Try me," he grumbled.

"I was sharing tongues with StarClan," Rainpaw said proudly.

Tigerpaw sat bolt upright. "Really?" Rainpaw nodded, tearing into her vole. "Did you go alone?" Tigerpaw asked, his voice quieter, as if they were sharing secrets.

"No," Rainpaw mewed. "Lakestar brought me."

"What did you see?!"

"I can't tell you," Rainpaw mewed.

"You are _so_ lucky," Tigerpaw grumbled.

Rainpaw smiled to herself and then ate the rest of her vole. As she ate, Tigerpaw stood up and started grooming her fur affectionately. As his tongue ran down her leg, she started feeling a sore pain in her paw pad. She lifted it up delicately to see what was wrong.

"Great," she muttered. "I've got a thorn in my paw."

"Better get that pulled out, Tigerpaw mewed, getting out of her way.

"I can manage," Rainpaw meowed, wincing as she set down her paw.

"I don't think so," Tigerpaw muttered. Then he walked to the other side of Rainpaw and started pushing her gently down the path with his nose. "Come on, we're going to Catfish." Rainpaw sighed, and reluctantly got up and limped down the path that led back down to the camp.

It was a nice place, the SeaClan camp. On one side, there was the ocean with it's thundering waves and small sand dunes, and then the beach faded to grass. The main camp was a large patch of grass beside the beach, a little indent along the cliff face that extended along either side of the camp. Natural caves served as dens along the cliff, and down below, a large black circular twoleg-made object with grooves on all sides of it served as the medicine cat den. Water from rain or wet cats collected at the bottom of the den, and herbs were kept on both of the round sides of the den. Farther in, there were three tunnels. One led to a place where sick cats could stay, another was a room for herb storage, and the last one was where the medicine cat slept.

Rainpaw loved the den. She just didn't like the cat who lived there. He was always grumpy, complaining about how cats were always so careless, and how he had to fix their problems all the time.

"Catfish? Are you there?" Tigerpaw called out when the two apprentices reached the entrance to the den.

"What do you want?" Catfish grumbled, still out of sight. Tigerpaw and Rainpaw looked at each other and then entered the den.

"I got a thorn in my paw," Rainpaw meowed. She dipped her sore paw in the water at the bottom of the den, dulling the pain a bit.

"Well come over here! I don't have all day!" Rainpaw hobbled over to Catfish, and found him leaning over a pile of herbs, muttering to himself. When he saw Rainpaw and Tigerpaw, he walked over to them. "Let me see," he said. Rainpaw held out her paw. The older cat mumbled to himself and then, without warning, he leaned down and plucked the thorn out with his teeth.

"Ow!" Rainpaw yelped, pulling her paw back.

"Put these on it," Catfish continued, as if Rainpaw hadn't said anything. With her eyes narrowed, Rainpaw reached forward for the herbs that Catfish had pushed her way.

She gently applied them to her paw and then stood there, thinking.

Catfish didn't notice her until he had sorted most of the herbs in the pile. "What are you waiting for?" he asked, still sorting herbs onto different shelves.

Rainpaw shook her head. "Nothing, just…" She paused. "Have you ever thought of taking on an apprentice?"

Catfish stopped short. "Why?" he asked, hesitantly.

"No reason," Rainpaw said hastily. "Just wondering. You've been medicine cat for a long time, and there are no new kits or apprentices. And, well… you're awfully old…" Catfish's whiskers twitched.

"Well, Rainpaw, I know how to care for myself. I think I can manage to survive until a potential medicine cat apprentice comes my way." He started sorting his herbs again.

"Come on, Rainpaw, let's go," Tigerpaw said, heading outside. Rainpaw took a final look towards Catfish, and then turned to follow Tigerpaw.


End file.
